January Interim Offers Students Learning Opportunities Beyond the Regular Curriculum

January Interim Offers Students Learning Opportunities Beyond the Regular Curriculum

January Interim Offers Students Learning Opportunities Beyond the Regular Curriculum

Dec. 17, 2012

More than 700 Buena Vista University students will be taking part in the January 2013 interim through on-campus classes, travel courses, internships, field observations and supervised participation experiences.

"Interim courses are an opportunity for students to experiment academically, to have hands-on experiences such as travel, intensive internships, and opportunities to learn about different areas not represented in the regular curriculum," says Dr. David Evans, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty.

"I am especially pleased with the number of students traveling this year, as interim travel courses provide them with rich encounters with cultural diversity and new places," adds Evans. "Interim trips are a 'safe space' for students to gain confidence as travelers, and over the past few years we've seen students follow up on their travel courses with return trips, full-semester study abroad, and research projects. Interim is also an opportunity for students and faculty to reenergize, break out of the routine of the semester, and engage in intellectual adventures that add breadth and depth to their BVU experience."

Some of the companies and organizations hosting student internships in January include: The Iowa Sports Foundation in Ames; Meredith Corp. in Des Moines; Omaha Lancers in Omaha, Neb.; Mayo Clinic (psychology internship) in Rochester, Minn.; Stein Biotechnology in Adel; Hospital Centro Medico in Santa Rita, Jalisco, Mexico; Bio5 Institute in Tucson, Ariz.; Iowa High School Athletic Association in Boone; Montana State University in Bozeman, Mont.; Build-a-Bear in St. Louis, Mo.

Approximately 28 courses will be offered on campus, including:

Creativity and Creative Thinking: It's Not Just for Artists. The course combines an intense beginning drawing/painting course with daily hands-on techniques to help students develop their creative potential.

How to Become a Recording Star. Students will study current trends in the music industry, basic music theory and lyric writing, and will be involved in a performance of music they write during the class.

Stranger Than Fiction: How Murder, Atomic Bombs and Rats in the Bed Changed Journalism. The class will analyze the genre of literary journalism.

How to Live to be 100. The focus will be on how to establish a healthy lifestyle that will add quality years of life.

The travel courses will be taught primarily by BVU faculty. The on-campus courses will be taught by BVU faculty and several guest instructors.

BVU is also offering additional travel courses during the spring semester. Twelve students are enrolled in a course that includes a trip to North Korea during spring break. Another 36 students are enrolled in three travel courses that will take them to Ireland; Spain and Morocco; and South Africa in May and June.

Altogether, 123 students have enrolled in the domestic and international travel courses offered in January and during the spring semester, which is higher than usual for an academic year.

Students and faculty on several of the trips will be blogging about their experiences. The BVU Travel Blog can be found at bvu.edu/TravelBlog.

Domestic travel courses include:

Storytelling with Walt Disney. This course offers trips to Disneyland (Anaheim, Calif.) and/or Walt Disney World (Orlando, Fla.) to examine the business side of the Disney operation and communication strategies for effective story telling.

The History of the NFL and the Pro Bowl: a Hawaiian Adventure. This experience will include meetings with NFL staff and players at the Pro Bowl, viewing practices, press conferences and attending the 2013 Pro Bowl.

Field Experiences in Sports Marketing and Management. The course includes two weeks in Phoenix, Ariz., visiting with executives of some of the nation's top professional sports teams and sports-related businesses.

International travel courses include:

Same Planet - Different Worlds. This course will allow students to experience the educational and social systems of rural Tanzania and provide the opportunity to complete requirements for academic field experiences.

Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. Students will explore the bio-diversity, history, culture and education of this country and learn about social justice issues there.

Interim is also an opportunity for students and faculty to reenergize, break out of the routine of the semester, and engage in intellectual adventures that add breadth and depth to their BVU experience.